MEET

SEBASTIAN VON LIECHTENSTEIN

the hedgehog

THE HOG OF HEDGES

Sebastian joined the VSI team as an enthusiastic hoglet in January 2015, after a few months of persuasion. He (like all hedgies) has poor eyesight, but an excellent sense of smell and hearing. While Sebastian is lactose intolerant, he enjoys dry cat food and the occasional banana. He is a connoisseur of Mid-century classical music and prefers flannel sheets for napping. Sebastian can hear ultrasonic sounds, even though we are not sure who or why someone did the research to discover this. If given the choice, Sebastian would prefer to pay extra at Target to avoid Walmart, but would consider himself aggressively unfancy.

MORE HEDGEHOG FACTS:

Hedgehogs got their name through their foraging habits // Each hedgie has around 5,000 spines, each of which lasts about a year // Hedgehogs are known as the gardener’s friend, but we don’t make him pull weeds around here // There are 17 different species of hedgehog // The most common domesticated hedgehog is the African pygmy hedgehog // European hedgehogs hibernate throughout winter // It is illegal to own a hedgehog in Pennsylvania // Hedgehogs are not affected by snake venom // They’re well-represented in literature // The collective noun is “an array of hedgehogs” // In 2006, McDonald’s in the U.K. changed the McFlurry to a hedgehog-friendly design // A hedgehog can run over six feet per second // They’re good at wearing sombreros // A hedgehog taking a bath is the cutest thing known to man